Chapter4
The suffocating stench in the dark alley had not yet dissipated when a burst of shrill applause suddenly rang out at the alley entrance, shattering the brief silence.
"What a touching reunion, isn't it?"
I whirled around. In the dim backlight of the streetlamp, Malachi and Serafina stood arm in arm. Behind them followed several neighbors with fanatical expressions—the newly minted "Awakeners."
Serafina glanced down at the trembling Jessica, then at Chloe standing beside Illian, her clothes tattered, a malicious sneer playing on her lips: "Illian, I never imagined you changed women faster than you made money. I just dumped you, and now you've found two new 'lovers'? But look at these two pathetic creatures, one a blood-covered madwoman, the other a defective product without any superpowers. Trash truly deserves to hang out with trash."
I clenched my fists, ignoring Serafina's humiliation, and stared intently at Malachi. Through my mutated vision, I could clearly see the enormous and terrifying maternal shadow on Malachi's body churning, greedily manipulating the emotions of everyone around him.
Malachi's arrogant smile froze the moment his gaze swept over Jessica.
He narrowed his eyes slightly, a barely concealed shock flashing in them. As the host of the parasite, he knew better than anyone the irreversibility of the parasitic process. Jessica's brain had been completely devoured by the most ferocious adult worm; she should have been an unconscious vessel only capable of tearing at dead flesh. Yet now, though covered in blood, her eyes were clearly filled with the uniquely human fear and sorrow.
“Malachi…” Jessica called out the name, her voice trembling, tears washing away the blood on her face. “Why did you do this to me? I love you so much…”
Malachi's face darkened completely. He abruptly turned his icy gaze to me , noticing the still-bleeding bite mark on my arm and the pool of black ash-covered parasite remains on the ground.
He instantly understood everything—this "ordinary person" they had so wantonly trampled upon actually possessed the power to kill parasites and reverse infection. This was the only fatal threat in his plan to rule.
“My dear,” Malachi suddenly lowered his head, bringing his voice close to Serafina’s ear, and said in a seductive, deep voice, “Look at Illian, how insanely jealous he is. Unable to obtain his own powers, he resorted to some despicable means to sabotage Jessica’s awakening. He’s now challenging your judgment and questioning your decision to choose me. If you let him continue like this, he will destroy the perfect power you’ve just acquired sooner or later.”
Seraphina's vanity and rage ignited instantly. The parasites on her spine wriggled excitedly with her anger, injecting even more potent toxins into her brain. "You vicious pauper!" she screamed, pointing at me. "You're not only a piece of trash, but also a viper who can't stand to see others succeed!"
"Seraphina, wake up!" Seeing the woman I once loved so deeply become so unfamiliar and insane, a complex sorrow welled up in my heart. I could n't help but take a step forward, extending my blood-stained hand. "That's not some perfect power, it's a parasite! It's draining your life! I can help you; my blood can pull it out of you. If you come with me now, you can still live!"
"Shut up! Don't try to fool me with your disgusting talk!" Serafina shrieked like a cat whose tail had been stepped on. Giving up her unparalleled superpowers? That was worse than death. "You want to take away my power? Die!"
She suddenly raised her hand, and a ball of even larger and hotter, ghostly blue flames, than those in the hallway before, gathered in her palm and slammed mercilessly toward my face.
I was stunned by the sudden murderous intent. I never expected that after realizing the truth and offering my help, I would be met with a truly deadly attack. Chloe reacted quickly, pulling me aside as I was still in a daze. Flames grazed my shoulder, blasting a charred crater in the brick wall behind us.
"You ungrateful scum, let me teach him a lesson!"
Behind Serafina, a burly man who had originally worked as a repairman stepped forward. He roared, and the muscles in his arms swelled to twice their normal size in a bizarre manner, stimulated by the parasites, as he lunged at me like a monster . He swung his fists, which were the size of sandbags, creating a gust of wind as he aimed straight for Ilian's head.
"Watch out!" Chloe exclaimed.
Faced with the deadly threat, Hunger 's eyes turned completely cold. His last shred of pity for Serafina vanished in the flames hurtling towards her . I didn't dodge; instead, I charged towards the burly man. Just as his fist was about to strike me , I reacted with lightning speed, ducking low and slamming my hand, still smeared with fresh blood, hard onto the frantically writhing parasite on the back of his neck.
"Sizzle—"
A piercing scream rang out, sounding almost like an insect struggling in flames. The parasite on the back of the burly man's neck instantly turned into a puddle of smoldering ash. His exaggerated muscles deflated rapidly like a punctured balloon, his eyes rolled back, and his heavy body collapsed to the ground like a lump of mud, completely unconscious.
A deathly silence fell over the entire arena. The infected who had been eager to try their luck looked at their fallen comrade and involuntarily took a half step back, their eyes filled with fear of the unknown.
Serafina stared in shock, her eyes wide. She looked at the burly man on the ground, then at my blood-stained hand, and a hidden sense of panic began to spread in her heart.
"What are you waiting for? He's already a madman that even superhumans have to be wary of!" Malachi said, seemingly inciting the crowd, but a hint of fear flashed in his eyes.
"Now!" Taking advantage of the brief moment when everyone was stunned, I shouted. I grabbed Chloe beside me and pulled Jessica, who was still crying on the ground, up with me. "Run!"
We rushed into the labyrinthine, dark alleyways. Behind us came Malachi's furious roar and Serafina's exasperated curses, followed by a flurry of footsteps. But I didn't turn back. I gripped Chloe's cold hands tightly. I knew that we not only had to escape, but also find a way to shatter this nightmare completely.
